Nucleotide Sequence Sharing between the Human Genome and Primers for Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) Detection

Kanduc, Darja

doi:10.1055/s-0042-1743260

Cited by 1 publication

(1 citation statement)

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“…Such a risk is real in light of the fact that oligonucleotide sequences have been shown to be shared between the human genome and primers that have been proposed/used for SARS-CoV-2 detection by PCR. 41 Therefore, this study might be of help not only to understand cross-reactivity phenomena and to address new specific peptide-based approaches in anti-SARS-CoV-2 vaccinal protocols but also to define a specific and precise diagnostics of SARS-CoV-2 infection and disease.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

SARS-CoV-2: The Self-Nonself Issue and Diagnostic Tests

Kanduc

2022

J Lab Physicians

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Objective At present, false negatives/positives have been reported in severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) diagnostics. Searching for the molecular basis of such tests' unreliability, this study aimed at defining how specific are the sequences used in serological and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests to detect SARS-CoV-2. Materials and Methods Analyses were performed on the leading SARS-CoV-2 biomarker spike glycoprotein (gp). Sharing of peptide sequences between the spike antigen and the human host was analyzed using the Peptide Search program from Uniprot database. Sharing of oligonucleotide sequences was investigated using the nucleotide Basic Local Alignment Search Tool (BLASTn) from National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI). Results Two main points stand out: (1) a massive pentapeptide sharing exists between the spike gp and the human proteome, and only a limited number of pentapeptides (namely 107) identify SARS-CoV-2 spike gp as nonself when compared with the human proteome, and (2) the small phenetic difference practically disappears at the genetic level. Indeed, almost all of the 107 pentadecameric nucleotide sequences coding for the pentapeptides unique to SARS-CoV-2 spike gp are present in human nucleic acids too. Conclusions The data are of immunological significance for defining the issue of the viral versus human specificity and likely explain the fact that false positives can occur in serological and PCR tests for SARS-CoV-2 detection.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%